Am I Still the One
by Plusle
Summary: Sportacus/older Stephanie fluff. Stephanie has been keeping a secret from her friends; can Sportacus get to the bottom of it and save her before it's too late?
1. Chapter 1

**Summary:** Sportacus/older Stephanie fluff. Stephanie has been keeping a secret from her friends; can Sportacus get to the bottom of it and save her before it's too late?  
><strong>Author's Notes:<strong> First Lazy Town fanfiction. I tried to make it as original as possible, but I had heavy influences from 18lzytwner, MeowMix2, Becca (Let me save you), MurphysLuck and like m old. You guys rock ^^

(Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or rights to LazyTown, Magnus Scheving does)

Stephanie pushed a loose strand of pink hair from her face as she raced down the Lazy Town college steps, taking them two at a time in her haste. The afternoon sun had already begun to sink behind the trees clouding the horizon and she was the only person in sight. The college itself had finished its workday a few hours beforehand but Stephanie had needed to stay after school to complete a dance project and had lost herself in its steps, letting all other thoughts leave her mind. Throwing the CD she had been using clumsily into her shoulder bag, she ran down the familiar streets towards her Uncle's house in the middle of town.

Since Stephanie had first visited Lazy Town nine years ago she had come to love it and the people she had met during her regular summer vacations. Once she had graduated from her local high school and had heard that a Lazy Town college had been established the previous year, it was all she could do to stop herself signing up and heading off, to much protesting from her parents. Eventually they had caved in and agreed, with the exception that she return to visit them at least once a month and for a few weeks during holidays.

She still kept her hair shoulder-length but the colour had lightened. As well as this she continued to wear a dress, but the colour pink was shared with other light insignia such as yellow and blue, which drew less attention instead of making her stand out like a sore thumb.

She was so lost in her thoughts she barely registered the resounding footsteps coming from behind her and by the time she realised who they belonged to, it was too late. Feeling a firm grip on her shoulder she turned around and met the glare of a guy not much older than herself. He was also a Lazy Town college student, but in the year above Stephanie. He was accompanied by a couple of his friends.

"Stephanie," he sneered, "You shouldn't be out so late. Didn't your parents ever tell you what happens to little boys and girls who don't make their way home on time?"

"Get off me, Duncan," Stephanie hissed at the older boy, trying to pull her arm out of his grip.

He scoffed and held on tighter. Stephanie tried hard not to wince as the pain increased. Duncan was a big guy by all standards, but unlike one of her best friends, Ziggy, he wasn't without strength because of the food he ate. His eyes were seemingly endless pools of black and a long trench coat hung about him. His dark brown hair messily covered his face but highlighted his ears, giving the appearance of a large primate. His companions weren't much better either.

"I said _get off_!" She shouted, struggling.

A huge shadow fell over the students but they were too busy to notice.

"Maybe I don't want to. Where's the money you owe me?"

"I don't owe you anything you gorilla!"

Duncan narrowed his eyes, "You're gonna regret insulting me," he raised his other hand and Stephanie closed her eyes anticipating the blow, but it never came. Instead, a more muscular hand grasped the older bully's. Surprised, Duncan released his hold on Stephanie, who fell to the floor because of the sudden loss of support. She kept her eyes closed and huddled herself into a small ball, trying to block out all noise.

Sportacus was practically burning with rage and it took a great effort for him to prevent himself from punching the boy. Duncan let out a small whimper upon seeing Sportacus and ran off into the distance with his cronies. Watching them carefully to ensure they had really left, Sportacus turned back to Stephanie, still shaking slightly on the ground.

Crouching down beside her, he gently pulled her hands away from her face and offered her his warmest smile. Stephanie fell into his arms and unconsciously clutched his shirt.

"Are you alright, Stephanie?" The heavily accented Icelandic voice soothed her, and she nodded.

"Yes, thank you Sportacus…" She turned to hide her blush and retracted her grip.

He helped her up and they began to walk towards the mayor's house in the receding light. Sportacus hadn't changed much over the past few years. In fact, she wouldn't have guessed that he had aged a day. 'I guess the healthy diet works' she pondered to herself.

Neither of them spoke, and the silence deepened. Stephanie didn't seem to want to discuss what had just happened, and Sportacus didn't want to push her so he let the matter drop. Although he cared for her deeply, he didn't want to upset her further through questioning. She would tell him when she was ready.

As they neared the edge of Stephanie's street, he stopped walking and faced her.

"Stephanie, you know you can tell me anything,"

"Yes,"

He waited to see if she would continue, but she remained silent, her gaze firmly fixed on the floor. It seemed as though recently Stephanie's life had been revolving around her college and work, so that the two friends rarely got to see one another. Sportacus was saddened by this, but understood how much college meant to her. He was happy that she was achieving so much and wanted her to be happy, even if that meant he couldn't see her as often. He still kept his airship housed over Lazy Town despite this, determined to be there if she, or any of the other kids ever needed him.

"Your Uncle will probably be worried about you, better head home,"

"Yes," He paused again but her gaze didn't falter. Resignedly, he gave in.

"Goodnight Stephanie. Drop me a note if you need anything, I'm always happy to help,"

Performing his trademark move, he flipped off back towards the airship ladder and Stephanie was left alone once more.

Even though Stephanie had moved to Lazy Town because she wanted to be nearer her friends, it was essentially pushing her further away from them. Trixie had jumped at the chance to escape from her hometown when she turned sixteen and was attending a different college miles away. Stingy, whom everyone could tell was affected by Trixie's departure, was less interested in playing sports and stayed inside, becoming isolated from the group. She still saw Ziggy often, but being different age groups he attended a school on the other side of town. Pixel was a year above her at the college, but arrived early and stayed late, so she only saw him in the evenings or during lunch. And Sportacus… Stephanie felt her heart clench, Sportacus had taken to spending days at a time in his airship, dropping down only to save the mayor from another of his accidents or the occasional cat.

Truth was, she had tried to distance herself from him. She didn't want Sportacus to feel like he had to save her. How would she ever learn to defend herself if he constantly protected her? She was also scared of what would happen if she continued to hang around with him. What had been a harmless friendship during her earlier years had matured into a fully-fledged feeling of love and the last thing she wanted was to ruin that friendship, especially when she knew it could never be returned.

With that thought, she took her house keys from her bag and let herself in, hoping her Uncle wasn't too angry.


	2. Chapter 2

**Part 2! Hope you guys are liking it so far, I actually wrote and finished this a few years ago so will post updates daily until it's all on here. :)  
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It wasn't until a few weeks later that Sportacus heard from Stephanie again. College had broken up for the summer and most of the college kids had headed back to their hometowns, even Trixie had returned and things were looking up. Stingy could be seen laughing around the town and Pixel spent more time outside, daydreaming new ideas for gadgets. Sportacus hadn't heard any more about the attack on Stephanie and she hadn't come to him for advice so he pushed it to the back of his mind. Despite this, he had carefully followed her home most evenings to be sure of her safety.

The letter came out of the blue one morning and Sportacus rubbed his eyes to make sure they were working properly when he read the name under the letter.

_Dear Sportacus,_

_ Me and the gang are heading down to the local fairground today and wondered if you'd like to accompany us. Just be sure to bring your own food, the only Sportscandy they have is the toffee-covered kind!_

_ Love Stephanie_

_ xxx_

He re-read the letter and smiled. It had been a long time since he'd seen all the kids together and he wouldn't miss the opportunity to join them for the world.

"Think he'll come with us?" Ziggy asked thoughtfully. Although he was still a little chubby, his daily exercise and healthy intake was pulling through and he could now nearly run as fast as the others.

Stephanie shrugged, trying to be nonchalant, "He'll probably be too busy. It was a bad idea to invite him,"

Stingy turned to her, shocked, "Are you kidding? We haven't all been together like this for a long time. I'm sure that Sportacus has been lonely by himself,"

Stephanie's weak smiled faltered. What if by pushing him away… the thought left her head as quickly as it had arrived. Why would he miss hanging around with a few silly teenagers? "He's probably been having the time of his life without us hanging over him, causing trouble,"

"Sportacus never seemed to mind saving us. He always looked genuinely happy," Pixel commented.

Stingy rounded on Trixie, "Besides, it was Trixie's fault most of the time anyway! Not _mine_!"

Everyone laughed at this statement but Stephanie's face darkened slightly and she impatiently looked at her watch. "Well, guess he's not coming, let's go-"

"Hey guys!"

Stephanie inwardly flinched at the sound of his voice but greeted him with fake enthusiasm alongside the others.

"Hi Sportacus!"

They crowded around him, Ziggy hugged him extra hard. Stephanie stood to the back a little and watched on embarrassedly.

Sportacus sensed this and was a little hurt. Stephanie would usually be the first one to run over and greet him, always with a smile to offer or a new dance move to show him. He pretended not to notice and smiled at her regardless.

"You guys all ready to go to the fair?"

"It was _my_ idea, you know…" Stingy stated.

Sportacus laughed and Trixie poked Stingy in the ribs playfully.

"Actually, it was Stephanie's idea. How'd you think of it Pinky?"

Stephanie ignored the use of her nickname and shrugged, a hot feeling of guilt rising inside of her.

The six of them headed off in the direction of the fair and chatted idly about what they had been up to for the past year. Stephanie only replied when spoken to and didn't join in the conversations willingly. Sportacus wondered if something bad had happened to her at college to make her act so coldly and unlike herself. He was about to ask her, when Ziggy broke off from the group did it for him.

"What's the matter, Stephanie? You seem sad…"

Sportacus listened carefully, maintaining his conversation with the others.

"It's nothing Ziggy. I'm just a little tired is all. College is difficult,"

"… I miss your dancing," he said suddenly.

She was a little taken aback, "You do?"

"Yeah… It's not the same around Lazy Town without your music, school can get difficult too,"

"…" She hesitated for a moment, "Well then, I can see I'm going to have to do something to turn that frown upside-down!" For a moment she was back to her old self, seeming to relish in just _being_. She tickled Ziggy and sang a little part of the Cooking Song he had loved when they were younger and soon enough he was beaming up at her joining in, the others turned around confused.

"_It's a piece of cake to bake a pretty cake…"_

She felt Sportacus' stare on her and stopped, blushing.

"Don't stop," Ziggy pulled at her earnestly. Trixie giggled.

"You're not still singing those old songs are you?"

Stephanie's blush deepened and she would have given anything to fall into the ground and disappear from sight.

"Of course not," she continued walking, Ziggy jogged alongside her.

"But Stephanie…"

"Sorry Ziggy. I forgot the lyrics,"

She hated lying because she knew it always amounted to trouble, but she didn't want to further the attention on herself. Sportacus frowned but kept quiet.

After what seemed an eternity they reached the fairground. Not many people had arrived yet because it was so early, but scanning the area quickly, Stephanie saw Duncan waiting outside the Ferris Wheel. Gathering her courage she purchased her ticket and hurried into the grounds.

"Er… guys, I'm just going to go to the bathroom, I'll be right back!"

Without waiting for a reply she ran off towards the Ferris Wheel.

"Stephanie!" Trixie shouted at her retreating back. She turned to the others. "The toilet's are that way…" she pointed in the opposite direction, confused.

"Something's wrong…" Sportacus muttered to himself.

Stephanie eventually reached the Ferris Wheel and ducked down out of sight from the entrance, motioning for Duncan to do the same.

"You got the money?" he whispered to her as he joined her on the grass.

"Yes… Uncle Milford's' gonna kill me…" She pressed some dollar bills into Duncan's hands and looked sadly at her empty purse.

"I'm glad that you came to your senses, see ya round," he shrugged and ran off.

Stephanie put her head in her hands but tried not to cry. She knew that would alert Sportacus' crystal.

No sooner had she thought the words than the voice of the person she least wanted to see at that moment spoke.

"Stephanie, please tell me what's going on,"


	3. Chapter 3

Stephanie couldn't bear to face Sportacus after the exchange that had just taken place. She brushed some dirt from her skirt and put on the most genuine face she could muster.

"I fell over. I'm so clumsy, sorry to keep you all waiting,"

Sportacus raised an eyebrow. Stephanie was not the clumsy type. Even though she moved a lot, it was always with grace and balance.

"Stephanie…"

"Ha ha! All better, see?" She jumped up and forced a laugh. "Let's go on some rides before the rest of Lazy Town arrives and we have to queue!" She ran back towards the others leaving a very confused Sportacus staring after her.

By the time Sportacus returned to the kids they were already running off towards the biggest roller coaster in the park; the _Lazy Town Heartwrencher_, so called because of the tremendous drop halfway through in which you had the feeling of all your internal organs flying up as you fell. Sportacus eyed it warily, but didn't want the kids to go on by themselves.

Stephanie and Ziggy were already seated and buckled in the front seat, giggling giddily and behind them were Trixie and Stingy, Stingy looking even paler than usual. Pixel gestured Sportacus over and the two of them also buckled in, ready for the ride to start.

Almost as soon as the roller coaster began the riders were separated. Each seat had its own cart and the three pairs flew off in different directions around the site connected by train-track pathways. Sportacus had the brief image of Trixie tightening her hold on Stingy's hand, and Ziggy pointing out the huge drop ahead of himself and Stephanie before he and Pixel flew over a hotdog stand and into a tunnel.

His eyes quickly adjusted to the dramatic change and he anticipated the bends and drops in the ride easily. He was a little worried about Pixel getting motion sickness, but the teenager was coping well, even letting out a little yell of amazement every so often.

"Did you see the mechanism on the coaster's carts?"

Sportacus smirked. In the distance he could hear excited screams of what he imagined were Stephanie and Ziggy falling the immense drop. He hoped it wasn't too scary for them.

A short while later the tunnel abruptly ended and they were out in the sunlight again. Searching the ride for the others he noticed it was Trixie and Stingy's turn for the drop, they were nearly at the top and Stingy in particular was gripping the safety railing very very tightly. Something inside of him wanted to stop the ride so that they would be safe, but he knew that if Stephanie and Ziggy… Wait a sec. He scanned around once more but couldn't find the two other passengers. Tilting his head back he knew they weren't behind him either.

"Pixel, have you seen Stephanie and Ziggy's cart?"

"Not since we entered the tunnel… I wouldn't worry Sportacus, all the carts join up towards the end. They're probably in a similar tunnel to our own. Plus, if they were in trouble, you'd be the first to know about it," he glanced towards Sportacus' chest and the crystal placed carefully on it.

Sportacus nodded grimly, his crystal was a means of keeping Lazy Town's inhabitants safe. Whenever someone was in trouble it would flash and alert him to trouble and the person who needed his help. Then a thought struck him. When Stephanie had fallen over, or whatever had happened that had brought her distress, his crystal had not gone off. Did that mean it was somehow broken? He tapped it gently to check, but it seemed to be in working order. He had always known when someone was in trouble… except for that time when Robbie Rotten, Lazy Town's resident villain, had switched it for a fake. The thought scared him that it may have happened again and he wanted nothing more than to make sure it was working properly. However, secured tightly to the ride with no way of escaping, all he could do was sit tight and watch over them as best he could.

Stingy and Trixie had reached the top of the drop and before they fell he heard Stingy scream, "This roller coaster is definitely _not mine_!" and then the two of them plummeted. He hadn't witnessed Stephanie and Ziggy's fall but seeing the kids plunge like that made him question the ride's safety.

When their cart reached the bottom he breathed a sigh of relief and grinned as Stingy laughed along with Trixie. He then noticed that it was finally his cart's turn to fall. Feeling a little nervous he made sure that Pixel was still feeling ok.

"Isn't this great?" His friend smiled encouragingly and Sportacus nodded back nervously.

As the ride panned upwards, a feeling of power grew inside of him. He could see the entire park from his position and at that moment Stephanie and Ziggy's cart emerged from a tunnel at the other end of the park. Feeling in control once again he prepared himself for the fall as he and Pixel dropped into seemingly empty sky.

Stephanie watched Sportacus' cart from her position outside the tunnel. She wasn't sure if it was his first time on a roller coaster and if he would be able to cope with the thrill, but then again he controlled an airship by himself. As they fell she heard Pixel shout the word "Banzai!" and exchanging a look with Ziggy, the two of them burst into laughter.

She hadn't realised how much she had missed her friend's company until today and it saddened her to think that soon she would go back to studying again and not see them for months.

Unbeknownst to the group on the roller coaster, another person had expectantly been watching their progress. Disguised as a ride attendant, Robbie Rotten greedily sniggered at the thought of Sportacus free falling to his doom. He wished that he could rig one of the rides to make it unsafe for him somehow… Spinning around to observe the rides surrounding him, he noticed one perfect for the job. Laughing loudly and rolling up his sleeves, he began his evil plan.

"One that will make that Sportadork leave town _FOREVER!_"

The last word reverberated around the park and he clamped a hand over his mouth to quieten the noise. "Forever!" He whispered.


	4. Chapter 4

Once the ride was over, the six friends dismounted and walked towards a candyfloss booth they'd seen from the ride. Stephanie made sure that at least two of her friends stood between herself and Sportacus at all times and generally avoided eye contact with him.

Sportacus stood back as the kids ordered the food, slightly uncomfortable they were choosing the unhealthy option, but not wanting to ruin the first group day out they'd had in a long time. Finding a picnic table he set down his backpack and began to do press-ups on the ground next to it.

"Sportacus!" Trixie laughed as the group came over, "Today's a day to relax, you shouldn't be exercising,"

"Remember the last time he took a vacation?" Stingy replied, "He couldn't sit still for a single minute, I don't think there's any point in forcing him to relax,"

Trixie threw him an angry look, but smiled afterwards. The kids all sat down on the picnic bench enjoying the candy and eventually Sportacus joined them, taking an apple from his bag before eating it.

"I remember SportaStephanie," Ziggy said, smiling warmly.

Stephanie pretended not to hear and continued eating.

The Fairground had begun to get busy by the time their food break had ended. The _Lazy Town Heartwrencher_ already had a ten minute long queue and most of the bigger rides were the same. The kids all seemed to want to go on different rides, but with the queues it would impossible to do what everyone wanted before the fair closed at 6 o'clock that night. They decided to split up and meet back later for one final ride together.

Ziggy snuck back towards the candyfloss booth, licking his lips greedily while Trixie and Stingy ran towards a rapids ride at another end of the park.

Pixel seemed unsure what to do, so using the device attached to his elbow he brought up the park map. Stephanie and Sportacus shuffled closer to Pixel to check out the rest of the rides on offer.

Pixel finally decided to go on _Neon Express_, which was a sort of dodgems ride on a track in which you could control the direction it turned and the speed it went. Stephanie finally settled on going for the ride with the shortest queue; The Ferris Wheel. Sportacus wanted to join her, but because of her recent behaviour he wasn't sure if she'd want him to.

As Pixel trudged off to join the queue for the _Neon Express_, Stephanie asked Sportacus what he was going to do.

"I was hoping I could join you on the Ferris Wheel, but I understand if you'd rather go alone,"

Stephanie thought about this for a moment, but decided that she would really like the company and agreed.

The two of them waked towards the ride and chatted about old times and future plans. During those moments it seemed as though no time had passed at all and an eight-year-old Stephanie was happily talking with her favourite above-average hero.

Robbie watched the two of them from his hiding place behind some bushes. Frowning at the two friends he noticed the way they looked at each other with hidden love in their eyes and pretended to be sick.

"Maybe I can use this to my advantage," he thought, rubbing his hands together eagerly. Adjusting his hat he walked towards the Ferris Wheel and dismissed the guard on duty for lunch. As the couple approached he put on a fake smiled and beckoned for them to sit in an empty, red compartment.

Stephanie was slightly suspicious of the man on duty because of his familiar eyes and expression but let it drop and stepped inside, Sportacus holding the door open for her.

Robbie closed the door once Sportacus was seated and silently locked it, stifling a laugh. They had literally walked into a trap. Turning back to the machine's control box, he pushed the big red button to turn it on and the ride started with a bump.

Stephanie gripped the sides and smiled sheepishly.

"They should really get some seat belts for this thing…"

Sportacus smiled.

As their compartment reached the top of the Wheel, Stephanie looked around the park for her friends. She pointed out Ziggy to Sportacus, still on the picnic bench with candyfloss, who waved to them. Stephanie and Sportacus waved back. The others were lost from view but the park was becoming more and more crowded so it was difficult to tell who was who.

"I didn't know so many people lived in Lazy Town," Stephanie stated.

"Most of them don't get out much, but there are a lot of people from nearby towns here also so it's probably about five or six times the population of Lazy Town," replied Sportacus.

The cart had reached the top of the ride and was beginning to descend. Stephanie wondered how long it would go on for; the atmosphere had begun to get uncomfortable. Just as she was about to make a comment on the weather, Sportacus spoke.

"Listen Stephanie, I've sensed that things have been a little… different between us recently and that I'm probably the last person you want to talk about your college troubles, but I meant it when I said you could tell me anything,"

Stephanie froze. "It's not that I don't want to confide in you Sportacus… it's just…" She paused a little before continuing, carefully deciding her next words "It's just that I don't think anyone, even a superhero, could help me,"

"Try me," Sportacus returned gently.

Stephanie squirmed; she had hoped that would have thrown him off.

"Well…" For the first time since she had gotten onto the ride, she looked into Sportacus' eyes and saw nothing but concern and something else she couldn't quite put her finger on. She decided to trust him.

"You remember a few weeks back, that… _incident_ with Duncan?"

Sportacus nodded, a slight frown on his face.

"Well, he's in the year above me at the college but he has a younger brother in Ziggy's year so he drops by the school often. One day after college he saw me walking Ziggy home because his Mum was busy working and the next day he started questioning me about it. He's pretty much the resident bully so I tried to ignore him but he kept being persistent. Eventually he got angry and threatened that if I didn't pay him a hundred dollars he would… hurt Ziggy. I wasn't sure if the threat was genuine but of course I wasn't going to pay him, even if I did have that kind of money… but he started to drop out of college early just to follow Ziggy home, as a warning. He said if I didn't pay him soon then he would kill Ziggy and that if I told, he would come after me," Stephanie shivered in fear. "So I… I stole the money from Uncle Milford and… gave it to him,"

Stephanie finished and a guilty tear ran down her face. She was scared of looking at Sportacus for what he might think. A long pause followed. Stephanie imagined Sportacus shouting at her and her heart chilled at the thought that her dearest friend might hate her. She was just about to face him to see his reaction when she felt him scoot closer and wrap his arms around her.

"You did the right thing by telling me, Stephanie,"

"…You're not mad?"

"Not angry, just… a little disappointed. I thought stealing was above you,"

"I'm sorry," she breathed quietly, "I just didn't want Ziggy to get hurt… What am I going to do, Sportacus?"

Sportacus thought about it, "First, tell me where you last saw Duncan,"

"In the fairground… he was under the Ferris Wheel,"

Sportacus stiffened, now he realised the reason behind the fairground idea; it was so Stephanie could give Duncan the money. Feeling a little cheated, he decided he would talk to her about it later and pushed it temporarily from his thoughts.

"That could mean that Ziggy is in danger, we need to locate him ASAP,"

Whilst they talked the Ferris Wheel had gone round again and they were nearly at the top once more. Scanning the grounds, neither Sportacus nor Stephanie could find Ziggy, he had moved from the picnic bench some minutes beforehand.

"We have to get off the ride and look, I'll try to get the attendant to stop it,"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the ride stopped. Confused, Stephanie and Sportacus exchanged looks.

"Maybe it's stopped to let more people in?"

Sportacus leant over and glanced out the window to the floor below. The attendant had vanished and a big sign in front of the ride said 'Danger. Ride currently broken, sorry for any inconvenience caused'

"Something is definitely wrong," Sportacus whispered.


	5. Chapter 5

Sportacus continued to search the ground for someone who could help bring them down, but all the attendants were busy controlling the bigger rides and no one seemed to have noticed the two people trapped inside the Ferris Wheel. At that moment he heard a sound that chilled him to the bone. Stephanie screaming. His crystal went off and snapping round he noticed that she had disappeared from the seat beside him.

"Stephanie?" he shouted.

"Sporta-" he heard a muffled reply somewhere to his left.

The glass in the window next to where she had sat had been removed and he stood up, walking over to look outside. A huge orange crane was parked below the ride and on its neck, clutched in the pincers, was Stephanie. As Sportacus looked closer he saw Robbie Rotten in the driving seat.

By this time, most of the people close to the area had fled, the attendants along with them with the exception of a single figure walking slowly towards the crane. Duncan.

As Robbie pulled the crane's levers, controlling the machine's arm, Stephanie was brought to the ground and Duncan seized her roughly, pinning her hands behind her back and tying a cloth around her mouth whilst holding a knife to her throat.

"If you move, she dies," he stated coldly.

Robbie got out of the drivers seat and walked towards Duncan, pulling a megaphone from his pocket.

"Long time no see Sportakook!" he shouted gleefully, "I believe you've already met my nephew, Duncan?"

Sportacus stayed perfectly still, "Let her go, Robbie,"

"Only if you leave town FOREVER!" his predictable response was made all the worse through the crackling megaphone and Sportacus felt his heart sink. In the past Robbie's plans had always been relatively harmless attempts to get him to leave. But this time was different. He would do anything to keep Stepha- all of the kids, from harm. Even if it meant that he had to give up his life in Lazy Town and never see them again.

"…Only if you let Stephanie go,"

"And how do I know I can trust you to leave?" Robbie replied.

"I stick by my words, Robbie," Sportacus returned coldly.

Robbie reluctantly walked over to the controls and the Wheel started to turn again, Sportacus' cart coming to rest at the bottom. Duncan kept the pressure of the knife on Stephanie's neck and his nails drew blood from her wrists. Stephanie let a few angry tears fall, she had let Sportacus down again and she would never be able to make it up to him.

Ziggy, Trixie, Stingy and Pixel were dumbfounded at the sight before them. All the fairground patrons were leaving the grounds as fast as possible. They had clumsily bumped into each other in the commotion and had to shout to make their voices heard.

"What's going on?" Trixie yelled above the noise.

"And where's Stephanie and Sportacus?" shouted Pixel.

"I saw them on the Ferris Wheel," Ziggy replied, "I hope they're okay…"

The four teenagers ran towards the now deserted Ferris Wheel and their jaws dropped open at what they saw.

Sportacus gave Stephanie a warm smile, "Everything's going to be okay, Stephanie,"

She looked on with disbelief, unable to reply because of the cloth tied around her mouth. Her eyes pleaded with him to re-consider or to think of something in which he wouldn't have to leave.

He shook his head sadly in return, as though he had read her thoughts. Stephanie felt useless, she wanted to at least give him a proper goodbye and apologize for the problems she had caused.

"You said you would let her go, Robbie," Sportacus' eyes turned to the villain.

Robbie looked at Duncan from the edge of his eye, "Duncan, release the pink brat,"

"But Uncle-"

"Just do it or I'll tell your parents what you've been up to!"

Reluctantly he let Stephanie go and she staggered forwards a little, struggling to make her hands work and untie her mouth bind. Sportacus was about to walk towards her to help, but Duncan pointed the knife at Stephanie again, ready to throw.

"Ah ah, weren't you going somewhere?" Robbie replied.

Sportacus froze but signalled to his airship, "… Ladder,"

The other kids were scared to move towards the gathering. As his airship loomed overhead, Sportacus saw them out of the corner of his eye and smiled.

"This is goodbye kids… Keep eating healthily and exercise regularly. I'm sorry that I can't be there… to protect you anymore,"

"Sportacus…" Ziggy spoke silently and tears flowed freely down his cheeks. All of the group were crying.

"You can't leave…" Stingy whispered.

"I have to," He replied and started climbing.

Stephanie wanted nothing more than to run to and hold onto him tightly, but with the knife still pointed at her neck, she was afraid to move and instead watched Sportacus slowly disappear into his airship.

Once the door had closed she hurried over to her friends. No one spoke; there was nothing to say.

The shadow that had fallen over them receded and Sportacus' airship left the scene. Stephanie felt incredibly hollow inside, as though her heart had broken in two and sitting herself on the ground she buried her head in her arms and cried silently as her world came crashing down around her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Authors Note: Thanks to Harry Albus Potter Dumbledore for the reviews! I'm glad you're liking it and hope you will continue to do so :)  
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Robbie laughed triumphantly and performed a victory dance. Duncan however kept his grip on the knife.

"Yes! Sportaclutz has left at last! Lazy Town can go back to being lazy again!"

Now everyone will listen to me, he sniggered to himself.

Suddenly, Duncan turned his knife towards Robbie.

"What are you doing?"

"You said I would get to keep Stephanie," he growled.

"Er… well, now that would defeat the purpose of my plan," Although Robbie was evil, he still had standards and didn't intentionally want to harm the kids, he only wanted to regain his former authority.

"I don't give a damn about your plan!" Duncan shouted, "Now give me what I want or I'll hurt you too!" He thrust his knife forwards and Robbie just managed to swerve out of the way in time to miss the attack. All of the kids, excluding Stephanie who was still hunched on the ground, looked on in surprise.

"Calm down, nephew!"

Duncan had gone into an angry frenzy and began to advance on Robbie, who moved backwards until he was up against the Ferris Wheel. Duncan was almost upon Robbie, the lazy villain saw his entire life flash before his eyes when suddenly, as the knife was about to hit, something big and blue rammed into Duncan, the knife flying from his hand uselessly to the ground.

Looking up, Robbie gasped in shock. "Sportacus?"

Sportacus ignored the villain and pinned Duncan's hands behind his back before removing something from the young boy's pocket. A few seconds later some policemen came bursting in on the scene and both Robbie and Duncan were hauled into the back of a police vehicle. The chief policeman thanked Sportacus who whispered something into his ear. The policeman nodded and left with the two villains, Robbie still shaking in disbelief.

The kids rushed forwards, forming a tight circle around Sportacus and hugged him tightly.

"Guys… I can't breathe!" he replied, laughing.

"Don't ever do that again, Sportacus," Ziggy cried into his arm, "I was so scared that I would never see you again…"

"Come on, do you think I would leave without at least giving you a proper goodbye?"

They remained like that for a few moments, until Sportacus noticed Stephanie on the floor. Untangling himself from the others with heartfelt hugs, he walked slowly over to her and crouched down like he had many a night ago.

Stephanie wasn't aware of the battle that had just taken place, or of anything that had happened afterwards. All she could think of was how stupid she had been and that she should have just talked to Sportacus about her problem when he had approached her before. It came as a shock to her when she felt a warm, comforting pull on her hands. Tears misting her eyes, she struggled to make out the figure covered in blue.

"…Sportacus?" she spoke so quietly, he wasn't sure if he had heard her properly.

"Yes, Stephanie, it's me,"

Joy bubbled forth inside of her and she threw herself onto him, her arms gripping his neck as she repeatedly spoke the word 'sorry' into his chest. Sportacus blushed at Stephanie's show of affection, but stroked her hair gently, trying to console her.

"Shh, don't worry, I'm here now, it's okay…"

When Stephanie eventually released her grip on him she looked into his eyes.

"Sportacus, there's something I need to tell you... Back there when Duncan had the knife to my neck, I was so scared that I would never be able to say it and I don't want to feel regret like that ever again, even if you hate me for what I'm going to say next…"

"Stephanie, I could never hate you, please don't be scared,"

She nodded slowly and spoke so quietly that only he could hear her,

"I… I love you,"


	7. Chapter 7

His eyes widened, stunned and the words echoed around his head.

_I love you…_

Stephanie hurried out of his embrace and ran off, not waiting for an answer.

He remained where he was for a few seconds before his brain began to function properly again and he stood up abruptly.

"Stephanie!"

She didn't stop or make any sign that she had heard him. He turned back quickly to the others.

"Guys, could you go to the entrance and get the fairground attendants? They'll need to know that it's ok to come back inside,"

Trixie nodded silently at him and he ran off in the direction Stephanie had headed. Pixel stood confused at his retreating back and faced Trixie.

"Have I missed something here?"

Both Stingy and Ziggy shared his look. Trixie rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Boys… Never mind that, let's go do what he asked, come on! Last one to the entrance is a rotten Sportscandy!" she giggled and sprinted in the opposite direction to the one Sportacus had taken.

Giving each other one final bewildered look, Stingy, Pixel and Ziggy followed.

Tears flowed thick and fast down Stephanie's cheeks. She was running faster than she ever had before, but she still couldn't work out why. She had finally done what she thought she would never get the chance to do and had revealed her secret to Sportacus. So then, why was she running? A few seconds before she had thought she would never see him again or be able tell him, but by continually hiding from him his sacrifice to save them and continue living in Lazy Town had been partially pointless. If she kept on like this, she would never see him again anyway. On top of that, she didn't even know what his feelings on the matter were.

At this she stopped dead in her tracks and wiped her tears clean.

"How will I ever be able to sort things out if all I ever do is run away from my problems," She questioned sadly.

Making her mind up, she turned back round in the direction of the Ferris Wheel but before she could take a single step she bumped into a large blue shape. The silence lingered between the two for a while and Stephanie couldn't meet his eyes. Finally, she spoke.

"I understand if you don't feel the same. I'm sorry,"

"You can't change your feelings, especially when they're ones from the heart. Besides I should be the sorry one, I didn't reply when I had the chance. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I haven't been entirely honest with you either, Stephanie,"

She was a little confused; Sportacus should be the last person feeling sorry, it was her fault for forcing her emotions onto him and potentially destroying their friendship.

"W.. What do you mean?" Her voice quivered as she spoke.

Her cupped her face in his hands, gently prompting her to meet his gaze.

"I love you too,"

It was Stephanie's turn to stiffen in shock.

"You do?"

"Yes, I think I may have always loved you," He smiled.

Her mouth formed into a huge grin and she curled her arms around his waist and leant her head against his chest, feeling warmth return to her body.

The two of them remained like that for a while, Stephanie feeling content in being held and Sportacus in holding her. For the first time in years, she felt as though she were truly at home and knew that her life would keep on getting better from now on and that she could always rely on her above-average hero to help her face her problems.

**Authors Note: There's one more chapter for this story, the epilogue which just wraps everything up... You can take it or leave it if you don't like it or want the story to end here though. I'll post it in the next 12 hours..  
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**And thanks again to Harry Albus Potter Dumbledore for your reviews, they really made me smile =)  
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	8. Epilogue

Epilogue

Trixie kicked a loose pebble from the ground as she and the others walked back towards the Ferris Wheel. After having alerted the park attendants and officials there had been a lot of commotion at the gates and she had had to explain to the police exactly what had happened, even though she was a little unsure herself. Eventually, when Robbie and Duncan's police car had driven away, the patrons were allowed to return to the park and she and the others started their search for Sportacus and Stephanie.

By this time the sunlight had dimmed and the sky become a brilliant shade of orange with cream coloured puffs of cloud floating over the horizon. It was that magical moment between afternoon and evening and Trixie couldn't help but think how hopelessly romantic it was. She gave a sideways smile at Stingy and gently slid her hand into his. Stingy turned a deep shade of red but slowly, almost gingerly, his hand returned her grip.

Pixel and Ziggy, completely oblivious to this new change walked slightly ahead and it wasn't until Ziggy gave a whoop of delight that Trixie and Stingy broke their link and looked up.

Sportacus and Stephanie were walking towards them, Stephanie's head laid delicately against Sportacus' shoulder, their arms entwined together with small smiles plastered across their faces. Trixie smirked knowingly and muttered 'about time' to herself.

Ziggy rushed over to the two of them and Stephanie gently broke free of Sportacus to hug her friend. A few loose tears of happiness inadvertedly ran down Ziggy's face.

"Stephanie! You're okay,"

"Course I am silly, SportaStephanie can handle anything," she giggled.

Ziggy grinned back.

"Not meaning to break up the happy re-union," Pixel said, "But what are we going to do about Robbie?"

"What about Robbie?" Trixie sneered irritably.

"Well," Pixel blushed, everyone had turned to stare at him, "It's just that I don't think Robbie really… meant to hurt anyone, so shouldn't we try and help him?"

Ziggy and Stingy shouted in argument.

Stephanie sighed. "I hate to say this guys, but I think Pixel's right about Robbie,"

"What?" Ziggy cried, "After he tried to kill you, you want to help him?"

"It wasn't Robbie, it was Duncan! I know that Robbie's done mean things to us in the past but it was never anything as serious as this… And don't you remember how fun it was playing pirates and wild animals with him?" Her voice had lowered to a whisper.

"But-"

"Ziggy…," Stephanie pouted.

"What do you think, Sportacus?" Trixie asked the blue hero who had kept quiet throughout their conversation.

"I think this is something you need to decide for yourselves. It's true that Robbie may not have meant it to go this far, but what if it happens again? We may not be so lucky,"

"Which is all the more reason we have to get him out of there. Otherwise he'll just grow bitter and gain more incentives for revenge. Maybe if we could help him…," Stephanie bit her lip thoughtfully.

"I'm behind Stephanie 100% of the way," Pixel nodded and punched something into the computer on his arm.

"Guess that settles it then," Trixie mocked, half-seriously.

Pixel threw her a dirty look.

"The police station isn't too far away… if we hurried we may still have time to go on one last ride together before the park closes in approximately… 40 minutes,"

"I better get going then," Sportacus fiddled with his goggles, "before Robbie really gets into trouble,"

"We're coming too!" Ziggy replied enthusiastically.

"I don't think so Ziggy, it'll be quicker if I go alone and besides, it is my job to help those in trouble!" He replied, smirking.

"At least let me come, they have more chance of believing your story if I stand up for him," Stephanie joined in.

"Or maybe you just want to keep Sportacus all to yourself," Trixie whispered in her ear mischievously.

Stephanie blushed and playfully pushed her away.

"The rest of you should wait here; we'll be back as soon as possible. Ladder!" Sportacus gestured towards his airship and a rope ladder came spiralling down. Stephanie climbed up first, sticking her tongue out at Trixie as Sportacus followed after her.

The two figures disappeared into the airship, which rolled overhead towards the setting sun. After its shadow had retreated, Ziggy spoke.

"Can I have some candy now? Excitement gets me hungry…,"

Meanwhile up in the airship, Stephanie sat on the floor next to the driving seat while Sportacus piloted. She wasn't sure whether speaking would distract him and took to looking around his airship instead. It was the first time she'd ever been up there and it was strange to finally be in a place she'd only dreamed of. She was so lost in thought that she jumped when Sportacus spoke.

"Can I ask you a question, Stephanie?"

"Shoot,"

"Why didn't my crystal go off all those times you were in trouble? When Duncan hassled you as you walked home, when you gave him the money…,"

"Oh, that. It's because I figured out how to beat your system. Usually when someone is in trouble they feel scared or worried which alerts the crystal… but if instead they don't want help it's possible not to get it by thinking of something cheerful and suppressing those darker feelings,"

"So, you pretended that you weren't in trouble and it fooled my crystal?"

"Basically, yeah," Stephanie was glad Sportacus couldn't look directly at her; she wasn't planning on telling him what that special, cheerful thought was. Her cheeks matched her hair colour and she rubbed them to try and get rid of it.

"Promise me one thing…," He said quietly.

"Hmm?"

"That you'll let me know if you need help in the future, please don't be scared to ask,"

"…Okay," She smiled.

A minute or so later they had arrived at the police station and the two of them climbed down the ladder. Well Stephanie climbed, Sportacus jumped.

They raced into the police station and Sportacus suppressed the urge to flip over to the chief police officer. Hailing him, the two men walked to a more secretive area of the room and spoke in whispered sentences. Eventually Sportacus motioned Stephanie over, giving her a confident smile.

"Stephanie… is it?" the officer asked. She nodded, "Well then Stephanie, this gentleman here tells me that Mr. Rotten wasn't to blame for today's events at the fairground. Is this true?"

"Yes sir," she replied earnestly, "The young man with him, Duncan, is to blame. Robbie was manipulated by him,"

"You do know that Duncan is his nephew…,"

"I know it seems farfetched but it's the truth sir,"

The police officer scratched his head, "Even if what you say is true, it's difficult to do much because no matter how small a part taken, Mr Rotten was obviously acting of his own accord at some point. Witnesses clearly state they saw him drive the crane and use it as a tool of the kidnapping,"

"In the past Robbie has driven this crane for less devious purposes and seemed to receive no consequences for it. Surely it can't be proven that, had Duncan not been there, he would have done the same thing," Sportacus pointed out.

The chief of police sighed. "In light of your recent years of work to help the community as well as the police Sportacus, I think that we may be able to make an exception in this case. However, at the very least Mr Rotten will be required to take part in a bare minimum of 40 hours community service,"

Sportacus nodded and the chief of police motioned at one of the other officers to go to Robbie's cell.

"We will escort him to his house and for the next few weeks continue to monitor his movements in case he tries anything like this again,"

"What about Duncan?" Stephanie asked timidly.

"Even if the kidnapping was entirely down to him, we can not hold him for longer than two weeks. He is too young to receive a proper sentence so the courts will side with him over Robbie. I'm sorry," he replied.

Sportacus caught Stephanie's worried look.

"Can anything be done to protect Stephanie?"

"We'll send Duncan to a different college, most likely one closer to his parent's house and also monitor his progress. I have a contact I can reach who should be able to take care of it. I'll let you know if the situation changes or anything else happens,"

"Thank you officer," Sportacus firmly shook the man's hand and he saluted and departed.

Stephanie looped her hand into Sportacus' as they headed back towards the door. Somewhere far to their left they heard a cry of joy and Stephanie smiled.

"I'm glad we could help Robbie,"

"I am too, but there's still one last thing I have to do before we can put this incident behind us,"

Stephanie looked confused. "What?"

Sportacus reached inside his shirt pocket and withdrew five twenty dollar bills.

"You got it back for me!" She gasped and jumped to hug him, burying her head into his chest. "Thank you so much!"

He returned the hug and stroked her hair peacefully. When they eventually broke apart Stephanie giggled.

"The others probably think we've gotten lost or stuck in a hole or something…"

"Then we'd better hurry," he smiled and scooped her up in his arms, returning to where he had parked the airship.

Ziggy was on his fourth piece of candyfloss by the time Sportacus and Stephanie returned and Trixie was pestering him relentlessly while Pixel and Stingy watched on.

"Really Ziggy, with all that candy in your belly we won't be able to go on any more rides 'cause you'll be sick!"

Ziggy stared defiantly back. "I don't get sick; I have a tummy of steel!"

"Well then don't blame me if you be a baby and want the ride to stop and we can't make it and you cry all the way home," She sneered.

"Hi guys!" Stephanie called to them cheerfully.

"Oh, hey Pinky, you look like you had fun," Trixie returned slyly.

Stephanie chose to ignore her.

"Did you get Robbie out of prison?" Pixel asked.

Stephanie nodded, "We shouldn't have any more trouble with Duncan either. Anyway, ready to go on one last ride? There's still about ten minutes before the park closes for the day!"

Ziggy wiped his mouth of candy and cheered gleefully.

"Can we go on the teacups, please? I don't feel like going on the bigger rollercoaster's right now…,"

"I told you you'd feel sick!" Trixie said scornfully.

Ziggy also chose to ignore her.

"Of course we can," Stephanie smiled, "That is, if it's ok with everyone else…,"

The others nodded in agreement. Trixie rolled her eyes and shrugged.

The group headed towards the teacups and chose a larger one with pink and blue stripes. Everyone squashed in and just managed to fit. There was a wheel in the centre of the cup that controlled how quickly or slowly it spun and Trixie immediately grasped it with both her hands, ready to spin as quickly as it would go.

When the attendant started the ride everyone was thrown forward because of Trixie's almost maddening desire to revolve. She was giggling fitfully and it wasn't until Stingy placed his hand on top of hers to get it to slow down that she calmed.

Stephanie cuddled up to Sportacus and smiled up at him, her eyes glinting in the clear moonbeams that had been reflected down onto the earth's surface. He smiled back and wrapped an arm around her waist, both of them enjoying the first moment the six of them had shared together in a very long time.

~*~ _Fin_ ~*~

**Thanks so much for reading/reviewing/faving!**

**And Harry Albus Potter Dumbledore, you are a star ^^  
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**- t3h plusle**

**xxx**


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